Deebo Samuel has received plenty of criticism for his performance throughout the 2024 NFL season, but perhaps none carries more weight than remarks from the greatest wide receiver of all time.

Samuel took to social media last week where he appeared to blame his perceived season struggles on a lack of targets before dropping what likely would have been a long touchdown reception in the 49ers’ 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on “Thursday Night Football.”

The Deebo Samuel noise is going to get a lot louder after this third down drop… pic.twitter.com/PhXVptCivh

— Arye Pulli (@AryePulliNFL) December 13, 2024

Legendary 49ers receiver Jerry Rice joined 95.7 The Game’s “The Morning Roast” on Monday, where he discussed Samuel’s continued struggles after another disappointing game against the Rams.

“I don’t know what is going on, because the weirdest thing is I think he had like three catches for 16 yards … for me, I would have been pissed,” Rice told Bonta Hill and Joe Shasky. “I would have been pissed at myself, I would have been pissed at the whole scenario, and I would pretty much go to work on the football field, at practice. And if you do it during practice, you’re going to be able to do it during the game.

“That ball that he dropped, after you complain about not getting that many touches, you cannot drop the football. Because everybody is going to get down on you and they’re going to come after you. I never said anything about not getting touches or anything like that. I just worked, man. I just kept working, and if you show it during practice, they’re going to make the call during the actual football game where you’re going to have opportunities, where you can make catches, get into a rhythm and be productive.”

In 13 games this season, Samuel has 43 receptions on 71 targets for 569 yards and one touchdown through the air with 34 rushing attempts for 95 yards and one touchdown on the ground, while leading San Francisco with five drops.

As frustrations for Samuel and the 49ers continue to mount, the star receiver and his team still are motivated to finish the regular season strong before heading into an offseason in which some expect San Francisco to part ways with the six-year veteran.

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